Have you ever heard of the summer slide? Homeschool parents and classroom teachers are all well acquainted with this concept. In a nutshell, the summer slide is when kids return to their studies in the fall after their summer break, and don’t remember what they learned the previous year. In fact, most curriculum spends the first six to eight weeks just reviewing previous material. The good news is, the summer slide is preventable. The following are five non-workbook summer learning activities for kids.
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Read Books
This is THE best way to keep kids learning in the summer. Reading keeps their brains engaged and gives access to information that may go beyond what is covered in their regular curriculum. Kids should read on their own and should also be read to.
Reading challenges are a great way to get kids excited to read over the summer. Check with your local library to see if they have are offering a summer reading challenge, or create your own. Incentivizing with prizes for a certain number of books read or minutes spent reading is a plus.
Play Games
Most kids don’t want to be given workbooks and worksheets during their summer break, but there are great games to practice math, geography, logic and so much more. Here are a few of our favorite games that we like for gameschooling.
Math Sprint – The Mental Math Game | My Homeschool with a View
Write Letters
This is a great time to put into practice those writing skills they have been working on all year. Write letters to friends, grandparents, cousins, etc. even if they live close by. It is still really fun to send and receive mail, and kids can also practice the lost art of addressing an actual envelope.
Journaling
There are so many fun ways to keep a journal and this is another great writing activity for summer break. They can do a daily log book where they just write about their activities of the day. There is also nature journaling where they record their outdoor observations. There really is a lot that can be accomplished through the practice of writing in a journal daily.
Science Experiments
You know all of those fun science experiments you didn’t get to during the school year? Now is a great time to do those. You can even make some up on your own. Take the experiments outside and you can hose down the mess afterward. Science can double as fun water play.
Our favorite summer science experiment is making a solar oven out of a pizza box. It’s a slow but fun way to cook S’mores.
How to Make a Solar Oven | Science project | Education.com
Summer Plans
Summer learning doesn’t have to look like work. It is actually a great opportunity to incorporate some of those fun learning activities you didn’t get around to all year. I am looking forward to getting outdoors for some hiking and camping this summer. Learning will still take place, but I always carve out plenty of room for fun too.
Homeschooling in Yellowstone National Park | My Homeschool with a View
I would love to know what your summer plans are. How are you planning on incorporating activities to keep your kids learning all summer long? Let me know in the comments!